A Foxy Fête: The First of Many Looks

I was so irrationally nervous before our first look. Sure, Foxy and I hadn't seen each other since the previous night, but we've gone days in a row without seeing each other before. Logically, those 12 or so hours we spent apart should have been no big deal. On the flip side, I've never not had access to my phone or not been able to text or call him, should I want to - especially today of all days, with the millions of thoughts and feelings going through my mind. Just that little bit of extra "forbiddeness", if you will, made everything so much more nerve-wracking and exciting at the same time.

This was it. This was the first time he would see me (heck, the first time he would talk to me) on our wedding day, with me all gussied up in my dress, my hair and makeup done to a tee. Would he even like my dress? Would he hate it and think it looks like a nightgown? Is he as nervous and/or excited to see me as I am him?

All photos by Exclamation Imagery unless otherwise noted.

And so, after running over the game plan several times with the photographers and taking a deep breath (or ten).. I started my walk from the bridal suite to the porch, where Foxy awaited me.

My heart was beating a million miles a minute as I carefully closed the distance between us (the last thing I needed was to fall on my face due to my untested glittered soles) - and I distinctly remember trying to make a snap decision of how to signal him to turn around. Do I grab his butt? Do I cover his eyes all peek-a-boo style?

In the end, I went with a good ol' tap on the shoulder. Foxy knew I was approaching, and he started turning around before I even got all the way over to him. I think it's safe to say that we were both feeling that nervous excitement leading up to this moment!

The moment I saw his face, I just remember being so... happy. For one, Foxy was absolutely living up to his nickname and was looking fine in his getup. Not to mention the look on his face in that picture - I seriously die. Even after five years, he still gives me butterflies with just a look.

Oops.. lip gloss on the lips!

We shared a few moments together, just trying to soak each other in before the whirlwind officially started. Thinking back, I'm pretty sure that these were the only few minutes we genuinely had to ourselves that day.

We shared stories about our respective mornings - you know, like how I was running around like a crazy person and he was all locked up in his room - and admired how awesome we both looked. I also couldn't resist the urge to show off my beyond gorgeous bouquet, ribbons and all!

Oh look, a little Bee surprise!!

We couldn't linger for long, though.. the day was really just beginning and our ever-trusty timeline said it was time for a school bus and some wedding party pictures. Intrigued? Stay tuned!

Miss a recap? Catch yourself up!

It's Wedding Week! - The week of the wedding started out pretty hectic, but we made it through (relatively) unscathed.

We're Cool People (who had to deal with a slight change of plans) - On Friday, we made our way to the venue, had a relatable moment on the radio, and learned about some last minute changes that we made an effort to take in stride.

Practice Makes Perfect.. And Crabs Don't Hurt, Either - After most everyone was settled in on Friday evening, we had our rehearsal followed by the best dinner ever - a Maryland crab feast!

Rise and Shine! - Wedding morning was soon upon us, and I woke up at the crack of dawn ready to get prettified.

Pretty Women - Over the course of the next several hours, myself and the girls hung out, got our hair and makeup done, had a photo shoot, and drank champagne.

Dressing Up - Soon enough, it was time for me to slip into my dress!

Dapper Dudes - At the same time, Foxy and his guys were ironing and getting into their suites - and Foxy was opening his wedding day gift!

Huzzah! I'm Married!

So weird. So, so weird. Although I do get a kick of calling this guy my husband!

Hive, our wedding was magical. I laughed. I cried. I felt butterflies. I smiled so much my cheeks hurt.

I tried my hardest to take people's advice - to soak it all in, because they kept telling me "it all just flies by". You know what? They were 100% right. It still feels so surreal; I know I was there.. it all happened.. but it still feels like a dream. A wonderful, magical, glittery dream. ((Yep. Glittery.))

From arriving at the venue to picking crabs at the rehearsal dinner; from getting an hour of sleep to getting makeup done at 6am; from running around decorating to getting (literally) sewn into my dress; from seeing Foxy for the first time as bride and groom to locking eyes with him as I walked down the aisle; from interpretive dancing to "Call Me Maybe" to doing car bombs at the bar; from becoming a Miss to a Mrs. Everything.. literally everything.. was perfect.

We're shortly off to a (much needed trip to) Mexico, but I am so very eagerly awaiting our pro pictures.. I just want to relive this whole weekend over and over and over! Fortunately for me, my friends and family are probably the best in the whole freaking world and documented almost everything on their own cameras as well. My Facebook is blowing up, and I couldn't be happier.

So no worries.. I'll be back soon.. but I figured a few sneak peeks wouldn't hurt, right?! Enjoy!

xoxo
MRS. Fox!!

From two years to two months

Two years ago today, Foxy asked me if I wanted a new ring. It was his own way of asking me to marry him, it was perfect, and of course I said yes.

I like to think we're super cool because some people with shorter engagements don't even get to celebrate one engagaversary, let alone two.

Foxy always gives me crap about this because "there's so many dates to remember". I tell him to deal with it because he's actually rather lucky - I myself only remember three dates: our first date (August 23), our engagement (April 18), and our upcoming wedding date in June. Maybe it's bad, but I honestly have no clue when we became "exclusive", when we said I love you, our first kiss, etcetera. Is that stuff I should know off the top of my head?! I could tell you a time frame like a month.. but that's about it. Hmmm.

Then again, I can't give Foxy too much crap since he's bad with dates in general. I mean, the man didn't even know what day Christmas is. And he celebrates it.

Anyway, I'm in awe that we've already been engaged for two years, and will soon be married in two months. It's felt like forever and it's felt like no time at all. Foxy.. I can't wait to call you my husband!! Happy 2 year engagaversary. :))

How are you and your SO with remembering dates? Have you (or will you) celebrate(d) an enagagaversary?

In the language of love, I'm bilingual.

I realize that title can have approximately 27 meanings, but here's the one I'm talking about:

Foxy and I have made the decision to go to a combo of premarital & couples counseling. The former for obvious reasons, and the latter because of certain issues and differences that we feel we need to work on - namely, communication. The best and worst thing about the two of us is that we are so different, yet so similar, especially when it comes to our stubbornness. Throw in a minor disagreement, and you can potentially have the recipe for disaster (or just a really big blowout for no real reason). Hence, couples counseling.

We had our first session this past Monday, and while I went in nervous, I left with an overwhelming feeling of hopefulness and anticipation. Part of that excitement, if you will, came from our first "homework assignment" - to buy, read, and implement strategies from the book The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman.

Image via The 5 Love Languages

Have you heard of this book? It's been on my "must buy/read" list for a few years now, as I've had many a (bloggy) friend rave about and review it. We're only about halfway through the book, but I can already tell you that Dr. Chapman knows his shiz. His theory (I prefer to call it fact) is that there are five basic languages of love: Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Receiving Gifts, Acts of Service, and Physical Touch. Within each specific language are various dialects - in other words, different ways that each can be conveyed and construed. The idea is that you and your partner likely "speak in different love languages", or, to put it more plainly, what makes one person feel loved and valued can be very different from what makes the other feel loved and valued (like a little love note vs making dinner, or a surprise gift vs carving out time to watch a movie). A short profile at the end of the book helps you determine your language(s), and you can delve into the respective chapters to learn more about both yourself and your partner.

Call me an optimist, but I just knew this book would be spot-on before we even opened it. I already had an instinct that Foxy and I had different ideas of how to show, heck, even feel, love. My profile determined me to need both Words of Affirmation and Acts of Service equally (who knew I was bilingual?!); his revealed that he needs Acts of Service and Physical Touch. While we both share the Acts of Service need, we still vary greatly with the other two categories. An example: I feel most loved when he tells me I look good or that he missed me after a night we spent apart, but it doesn't mean much if I say the same to him. In contrast, he feels much more loved when I'm the "big spoon" when we're cuddling because of the close contact.

Of course, the nerd in me finds these differences in feeling and showing love all incredibly fascinating. And, as I mentioned, we're just starting this journey and this is only part of the process, but it's already opened up more conversations between the two of us and already has us communicating better. If I can better understand what makes my partner happy and he, me.. well, our love can only grow and deepen and, most importantly.. last.

Tell me, does any of this ring true with you and your partner? Have you heard of The 5 Love Languages and do you have any experience/insight/advice about it?

US

Foxy and I have been having some really great wedding-related talks, lately.

As I've mentioned previously, for the past year and few months, I've been the one researching, putting together inspiration boards, and getting the basic "skeleton" of the wedding in place. Now that we are about 8 months away (OMG), it's time to implement some of those abstract ideas and sit down and really work out what we want for our big day.

A few nights ago, we talked music - what we could use for the processional, recessional, and first dance songs. While I've been compiling music for months, Foxy kind of opened my eyes to something: these songs need to be US. While we have similar taste in music, some things are definitely much more my taste and some are much more his. Naturally, I was picking things in "my style" of music; I was hell bent on using this one particular song for our first dance, but you know what? Foxy doesn't even know the band. As perfect as the lyrics and the music may be, it's not his thing. And we can't be dancing to a song that will forever be "our song" if he doesn't like it. So we spent an hour scouring our music collections and came up with some really great, unique possibilities that are so incredibly US.

We also talked about reception music - what will be played, what won't be played, the general vibe, etc. The second thing we booked for the wedding was our DJ, and Foxy was sold on said DJ from the get-go because he's open to us giving him a list of play/don't play songs and is willing to play some of our more alternative/indie music (this is key - not all DJ's will do this!). During said recent conversation with Foxy, I realized that I've kind of been off in la-la land planning and creating a certain vibe for our future wedding without checking in with him enough. He thought we'd be giving the DJ a specific list of what we want played, mostly the alt/indie stuff, with not very much "top 40" mixed in. When he mentioned this, all I heard in my mind was a big, fat SCREEEEECH.

hoooold up.

I'm a dancer - have danced my whole life, even a bit professionally - and aside from that, I love dancing to top 40 nonsense. I mean, it's dance-y. I also know that other people like dancing to top 40 nonsense. It's just what is played at weddings. I thought we'd have maybe 10 or so atypical songs of mine and Foxy's choosing, but I'd leave the rest to the DJ to decide - read the crowd and whatnot. The one thing I want and need from the reception part of our wedding is a good dance party. It can rain, we can not have enough chairs, whatever.. what would be most devastating is if people aren't shaking their little tail feathers and having a blasty blast.

Foxy and I talked it out - we still haven't come to a definite conclusion about the reception music yet - but we agreed to talk more about it in the future with each other and with our DJ. Communication is definitely key - even if your groom gives you the go-ahead to do most of the researching and final decision making. In other words, don't be fooled - your man may not always show it, but he does care about the details that make up the big day!

Another (and much briefer) recent conversation was about flowers - I mentioned how much I was loving the look of baby's breath bouquets for the bridesladies.

Image via Style Me Pretty | Photo by You Look Nice Today Photography

Little did I know, as relatively blasé as he generally is about the flowers we will have, he actively does NOT want all baby's breath bouquets. Duly noted. However! He also said that a nice mix of something else with the bb would be ok. So we still have some possibilities there!

Lastly, and perhaps the biggest talk we've had thus far pertained to our vows - whether we would write our own or not. I just figured we would write our own since so much of our wedding will have a more modern twist to it, but Foxy very much doesn't want to. This convo deserves a post of it's own, but it was good to sit down and really get an idea of what I want versus what he wants.. what I picture versus what he pictures for our big day.

So all in all.. even though I've realized that some aspects of our wedding will need to be rethought and worked out some more, I couldn't be happier with how personalized and US our wedding will ultimately end up being. I'm also kind of loving how involved Foxy is getting and wants to be with the rest of the planning.

I'd say he's a keeper. ;)

Superstition shmuperstition

Right now, I have 5 tattoos. My third was this simplistic beaut on my left wrist.

An infinity sign, you say? Well, yes. But look a bit closer (hi kitty!).. it's really two S's intertwined. I'll give you a hint: both Mr. Foxy's name and mine also start with S's. Not exactly a coincidence.

I knew I wanted a tattoo that pertained to myself and Foxy in some way without having his name written in big letters across my stomach, thug life style.

Hah. How mad at me are you right now for posting this?!

Image via Family Rights

So I tried to come up with clever ways of intertwining two (or more) S's, since Foxy wanted to get one as well, as long as it was something he liked.

I, personally, eventually went with the most basic. And I love it. I think it wore on Foxy, because a few months later, he got the same thing, just bigger and on his arm instead of wrist.

So there you have it. We have matching tattoos that represent one another. Hopefully you don't think I jinxed our relationship by this, but if you do? I think that I am going to prove you wrong. Ink is permanent and I am 110% aware of that. I think this was the most "rational" tattoo I've gotten, and I love it :)

Anyone else with matchy matchy love tattoos? Or one to represent your SO?

My first Dress post.

We're jumping right in, hive. It's dress time!

First and foremost, you all must know that I was obsessing over this one dress for the longest time:

It's Demetrios 3137. I've looked at and written about it so much that when I searched for it in Google images a few months back, my Weddingbee user pic came up. No lies.

That being said, I went wedding dress "shopping" three times in the first four months of my 26 month engagement.

The first time I went was on Long Island with my bff/maid of honor numero uno, Copper. They didn't have my dream dress, but I still tried on several dresses that were just "eh".. I had no idea (and a very exact idea) of what I wanted.

This is just a mess of a picture.

(No idea who made this dress)

Facial expression says it all. Although I did kind of like this at the time.

(Pronovias San Patrick Postal)

Just when I thought I was done meandering, I found a Demetrios dress that was similar-ish in style to my love, 3137. Copper and I made a last minute decision, tracked down my consultant, and tried it on.

Yowza.

(Demetrios GR181)

I couldn't stop staring at myself. Vain, much?

I was very close to declaring this THE ONE and calling it a day. I loved it. It fit me like a glove. It looked amazing and was incredibly figure flattering. But... it wasn't 3137. I needed to try on that dress. And this one almost seemed a little too formal for the general vibe Mr. Foxy and I are going for at our wedding. So Copper and I left the store happy with the end result and with a few sneaky pictures, as you have seen.

The second trip happen two weeks later, with foxy brideslady A. I decided to go straight to the source, to a Macy's bridal salon in Virginia, sponsored by Demetrios. Naturally, they had my dress, as well as several similar ones. And it looked just the way I hoped it would - the only downside was that some of the rouching on the body of the dress was messed up and broken, and the dress was about 3 sizes too big so the layers didn't quite settle right.. but even after all that, I still fell in love.

Awkward turtle.

Sigh. Love love love love love love love. The one caveat? It was about $400 over my (Foxy Mama's) budget.

So off I went to appointment #3.. alone. I decided to hit up David's Bridal to see what they had, and also to appease Foxy Mama. First up was a dress sort of similar to Demetrios 3137, but it just wasn't quite there.

(DB Galliano Signature SWG354)

The next was a big poofy ball gown that I liked more than I anticipated but made me look like I had one of those shrunken heads.

(DB CWG322)

 And then, to my surprise, I kind of fell in like with a very simple gown reminiscent of Maggie Sottero's Carly. Except this one was only $500. Seriously.

(DB WG3077)

I even got a picture with my consultant in a bridesmaids dress similar in color to what I want my girls to wear!

So that's that. I found a few I really liked and one I loved, but I still wanted to go shopping with Foxy Mama, or at least hear her opinions on the dresses I already tried on. While I very much liked the last dress.. I still couldn't get over the Demetrios one. I just felt so good in it. Maybe there would be a magical sale at just the right time or someone will be selling their used one? :/ I was definitely hoping!

Anyone else have difficulty finding a dress because of the price, or whatever reason?